Just as Li Yu was stunned, the town's guards suddenly pushed through the crowd and made way for her.

The residents looked over and discovered that it was the town mayor himself who came out to greet them.

"The town mayor is here."

"Don't speak!"

"Shh-"

The noisy sounds immediately quieted down, becoming completely silent.

Li Yu looked over and saw a man of about fifty years old with a calm face slowly walking towards them.

His black hair was streaked with silver, yet he wore a faint smile.

Before they even got close, the mayor couldn't wait to speak:

"Commander Li Yu, I've long admired your name."

"Welcome to our Bada Town, it is a great honor."

As he spoke, his gaze swept over the tightly packed crowd, realizing this wasn't the place to talk. He then extended his right hand, making a warm and sincere invitation to Li Yu, and said loudly:

"Your deeds have already spread far and wide. Please come to town with me for a chat. I have something important to ask of you."

Li Yu nodded slightly after hearing this, agreeing to the town mayor's invitation.

He also took this opportunity to learn more about Bada Town and Central State, preparing for the journey ahead.

So Li Yu turned to Ma Yuanbai and said, "Let's go to town first and see what important business the mayor has."

After saying that, Li Yu led his team and followed the town mayor's guard towards the town center, and the crowded residents also made way for them.

As Li Yu walked along, he saw simple mud houses and stone tiles on both sides of the town.

Compared to those rapidly rebuilt, sprawling mega-cities, the scenes here represent the most authentic and normal lives of ordinary people in Zhongzhou.

As soon as Li Yu entered the town center, residents on both sides of the street greeted her, and some even offered her food and water.

Faced with a warm welcome, Li Yu smiled and nodded repeatedly, expressing her gratitude to the residents.

Before long, the group arrived at the entrance of the mayor's office.

Li Yu dismounted and stepped forward, and the town mayor surprisingly opened the door for him and invited them inside:

Welcome to Bada Town.

Seeing this, Li Yu led Ma Yuanbai into the office.

Seeing this, Lin Han insisted on coming in, and Li Yu did not stop him.

"Please have a seat," the town mayor gestured.

After sitting down, Li Yu couldn't wait to ask:

"Mayor, what brings you to see me?"

The mayor closed the door tightly before slowly beginning to speak:

"Commander Li, I've heard about your heroic deeds on the Central Plains defense line, and I deeply admire you. It's not hard to see that you possess extraordinary abilities..."

Before the town mayor could finish speaking, Li Yu interrupted his meaningless remarks:

"Mayor, just say what's on your mind."

Seeing Li Yu's straightforwardness, the town mayor stopped beating around the bush and immediately got straight to the point:

"Commander Li Yu, to be honest, things have been a bit unsettled in our town lately! We hope you can lend a hand!"

Upon hearing the mayor mention this matter, the assistant who was standing beside the mayor finally realized that it was very rare for someone of Li Yu's status and strength to be able to come to their town. Perhaps Li Yu really had a way to resolve this crisis.

The assistant, as if waking from a dream, echoed:

"Yes, Commander Li Yu, please save the residents of our Bada Town."

Faced with the mayor's earnest gaze, Li Yu frowned slightly and asked:

"What's wrong with things?"

The mayor's assistant hurriedly stepped forward and nervously explained:

“Recently, a monster with a completely red body has suddenly appeared outside the town.”

"This monster specifically attacks residents who are out and about; so far, more than a dozen people have died."

"Now everyone is in a state of panic, and many people are afraid to leave the town." The assistant's words revealed a deep sense of fear.

"A red monster?"

Upon hearing these words, Li Yu couldn't help but look at Lin Han beside her. Could this monster be the one Lin Han had encountered before?

At this moment, Ma Yuanbai, who had been listening silently, suddenly asked curiously:

"Since the monster has already killed so many people, what about the Central Plains Enforcement Team?"

The mayor sighed heavily and said:

"It was reported long ago, and the Central Plains Law Enforcement Team sent people to capture the monster that same day."

"As a result, the enforcement captain came back and said that the monster was somewhat strange and its strength far exceeded their expectations."

"Therefore, we need to transfer a highly skilled Taoist priest from a major city to provide reinforcements, and we are also asked to wait patiently in Bada Town for a few days."

The mayor's face showed helplessness and worry as he spoke:

"But human lives are at stake, how can we afford to wait? Not a day has passed since then, and residents have been brutally murdered."

"I understand." Lin Han, who had been standing behind the crowd, suddenly became agitated and roared angrily:

"So your town of Bada hires a lot of irrelevant people from nearby towns to act as scapegoats."

The town mayor sitting opposite him frowned, his previously kind face instantly turning extremely serious. He looked at Lin Han and said in a deep voice:

How did you find out about this?

Li Yu couldn't help but turn around curiously, looking at Lin Han's face, which was flushed red with anger.

Why would Lin Han, who is usually so taciturn, suddenly speak so sharply and logically today?

This was the first time he had ever seen Lin Han speak so fluently.

Lin Han remained indignant, seemingly having forgotten his stutter, and continued speaking to himself:

“Your purpose is not to eat mutton at all, but to call everyone here temporarily.”

Lin Han had just spotted several familiar faces from Wucheng in the crowd in the town. These people were originally temporary workers in Wucheng, doing all sorts of jobs.

But now, these people have all appeared in this remote town of Bada, which is really strange!

"Before setting off, Uncle Lin felt that the reward for this mission was too high and that was very abnormal. He told me to be extra careful. I never expected that he would still be killed by you in the end!" Lin Han's voice choked up as he said this.

Li Yu was secretly surprised. Lin Han, who seemed silly, was unexpectedly so thoughtful and meticulous at this crucial moment.

However, faced with Lin Han's indignant accusations, the town mayor simply responded expressionlessly:

"It wasn't us who killed your uncle, it was that monster. This has nothing to do with us."

Upon hearing this, Lin Han was stunned, as if someone had poured a bucket of cold water on him.

He opened his mouth, wanting to refute, but his throat felt like it was stuffed with cotton, and he couldn't utter a single word.

At this point, the town mayor pressed on, continuing to ask:

"Since you said you encountered a monster, how did you survive?"

Lin Han gritted his teeth, quickly reached into his pocket, and pulled out the knife with the crystal core embedded in it.

"I have a knife! I survived because of this knife."